You love Yanni's. So do we. Their adjoined Lemoni Bar seats about 85 people and is open for lunch, dinner or just cocktails. Painted natural tones and accented with elegant lighting, the lounge provides a subtle contrast to the bright, light and airy dining rooms at Yanni's. It’s an ideal place for pre- or post-movie cocktails and snacks, or more substantial cuisine. Their green chile Bloody Mary will certainly boost your brunch.

Zinc is a delightfully renovated historic space in Nob Hill, reborn as an upscale restaurant serving elegant American food with noticeable French inspiration. Downstairs, the cellar bar attracts a younger crowd for drinks and music. The happy hour menu, wines by the glass and prices are the best around. Give the brunch a try, and while you’re at it, try a Taos Mule from the bar.

New Mexican food in the Garduño’s vein—plus burgers and booze—in a bucolic valley setting. In fact, El Bruno’s does indeed occupy the site (and, one might assume, the demographic) of the former North Valley Garduño’s.

Touted as New Mexico’s largest restaurant, the North Valley’s El Pinto is best known for its gorgeous, shady environment (perennially Best Patio in our restaurant polls) and award-winning jarred salsa. Try it for margaritas, brunch and a little flan.

What goes better with a cold Budweiser and fresh chicharrones from Bandido Mexican Food than some rousing music? This joint has a variety of genres to pull in anyone. Karaoke? Down some liquid courage, and grab the mike on Wednesdays. Want that Latin polka feel? Dance to the musico banda on Fridays.

Stop by at lunchtime for a creative craft beer like their Blackberry hefeweizen and to play some Super Mario Bros like the professional you are. Or hang out and dine on something tasty from a local food truck and listen to some live jams. Or if you just got off the night shift, head over at 7am on a Saturday for breakfast and beer.

Vernon’s is a swanky underground spot for good eats and high times, delivered speakeasy-style. The dining room is walled with lustrous, ebony adobe, and the tables are clothed in crisp, black and white linens. By the glass or bottle, there’s plenty of quality hooch. The menu is classic steakhouse stuff with beef tournedos in a silky demi-glace, fresh fish and a damn fine veal Oscar. Check out the Black Diamond Lounge to take in the fancy cocktails and live music.

This excellent local brewery has live music and a large patio to relax at (which makes it an excellent summertime destination). Try the Flashback IPA, Pecos Trail brown ale or the Dougie Style amber. Balance the liquids with brats, flatbreads, sandwiches or salads. Canteen has seasonal items always making appearances on the menu so there is always something new to try.

Enter this cavern ... erm, we mean tavern ... and get ready to relax the old fashioned way: drink alcohol and throw around sharp, pointy objects. With refreshing brews, pool, darts and bangin’ live music from local groups like the Memphis P Tails, this the coolest dive with an underground feel.

Aside from the obvious priority of providing a fine selection of local beers, the customer service is top-notch. We prefer the malty, bready pale ale, the Horned Honey Pale. Make sure to keep up to date on their seasonal beers like the summer 2017 Sour Cherry Wit or Flanders red ale.

Have an award-winning beer or three and wobble on over to whatever food truck is there (which you can find on their website). While the trucks stay until about 9pm, Marble is open ‘til midnight every night except Sunday. Listen to some live bands every Saturday night or grab a growler, six-pack or keg to go if you want to avoid the loyal following this Albuquerque favorite has gathered.

O'Niell's is comforting, a little cheeky and unapologetically Irish-American. The Juan Tabo location offers a gigantic patio and more floor space, but still features old favorites like the Burger in Paradise and fish and chips. And there’s plenty of live music at both locations. Build-your-own Mimosas make O’Niell’s a unique place to brunch.

This Old Town favorite offers something to suit most appetites, from green chile cheeseburgers to rock shrimp pappardelle, and it’s all served up in the adobe warmth of a 200-year-old hacienda. Don’t skip the drinks: They offer several excellent Margaritas to slake your thirst.

Hidden in the Sawmill District, Ponderosa is a family-friendly brewery with spot-on beers and a kids’ play area. The suds lean toward the hoppy end of the spectrum. Our favorites include the Ghost Train IPA, Rip Saw red and 200th Brew Baltic porter.

In addition to an upscale selection of booze, the cozy and modern Q Bar serves a brief but pleasantly appetizing menu of nibbles and noshes. The dishes are small enough to make good snacks and expensive enough to keep them that way—you'd have to spend more than you'd like in order to really fill up.

Seasons’ rooftop patio is one of our favorite wine-drinking destinations, especially when it’s nice out. There are heaters up there for chilly nights, the courtyard fountain provides a calming gurgle, the view of the mountains is great, and the happy hour menu has outstanding dishes at more-than-reasonable prices.

This seemingly small hole-in-the-wall is quite a surprise when you first walk in: On the outside one would expect the restaurant to be small, but it’s quite spacious inside. Try the burger with fries for just $6.25.

Brickyard Pizza is known for fast slices and beers on the cheap. It's the only full bar directly across from UNM, making it the prime watering hole for your post-theater and post- or pre-class needs. It also sometimes has live music and, usually, more televised sports than you can handle. The best thing about Brickyard, though, is that it's also the only noncorporate pizza establishment with late-night delivery (until 2:30am on Friday and Saturday and until 1:30am all other nights) in Burque, which satiates an otherwise unfortunate void.

A tried-and-true college sandwich shop, Cheba Hut is Albuquerque’s answer to a Which Wich or any number of grab-n-go deli situations. With fresh-baked bread, loaded sammies and plenty of vegetarian options, they definitely know how to cater to their crowd. They’re open ‘til midnight, too, so provide a great solution to those late-night munchies.

O'Niell's is comforting, a little cheeky and unapologetically Irish-American. The menu features favorites like the Burger in Paradise and fish and chips, and there’s a children’s menu to satisfy the little ones. The huge, enclosed dog-friendly patio is gorgeous, with enough space for boisterous tables of in-laws and extra kids to sit comfortably, and of course beer on tap to help the experience go down smoothly.